Wheeling police investigate shooting death of 23-year-old

Wheeling police investigate after a 23-year-old man was shot and killed in Wheeling, Ill. on May 2, 2013. (Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune)

Wheeling police investigate after a 23-year-old man was shot and killed in Wheeling, Ill. on May 2, 2013. (Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune)

Karen Ann CullottaSpecial to the Tribune

As police continued their investigation Thursday into the shooting death of a 23-year-old Wheeling man, officials said witnesses have given conflicting reports about the moment gunfire broke out as a crowd of neighbors gathered to enjoy the warm spring night.

Rafael A. Orozco, of the 500 block of Pleasant Run Drive, was pronounced dead about 9:50 p.m. Wednesday at Glenbrook Hospital in Glenview, according to the Cook County medical examiner's office.

According to Wheeling police, who declined to confirm the identification of the victim pending notification of relatives, officers responding around 9 p.m. Wednesday to calls of a person shot in the 400 block of Pleasant Run Drive found a man with a gunshot wound to the chest.

“From what we’re hearing, there were a lot of people, adults and children at the apartment complex who were out enjoying the nice weather last night in a common walkway,” said Wheeling Deputy Police Chief John Teevans.

“We are getting a lot of conflicting stories, so investigators are now working with those who they determine are the best people to talk to,” Teevans said.

Wheeling police are still receiving assistance with their investigation from evidence technicians and investigators from the North Regional Major Crimes Task Force, which remained at the scene Thursday afternoon, according to officials. In addition, police have dispatched extra officers to patrol the area, Teevans said.

“The safety of the neighborhood is our main concern right now, as the residents are uneasy, and there are a lot of kids living there,” Teevans said.